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Publisher's Summary

From international best-selling thriller writer Frederick Forsyth comes a chilling new mystery.

The cocaine industry is worth billions of dollars a year to the drug cartels who spread their evil across Western society, causing incalculable misery, poverty and death. Slowly, gradually, inexorably it is spreading and it is a blight which must be stopped.

One man, Paul Devereaux, intellectual, dedicated, utterly ruthless and ex-CIA special ops, is given what seems like an impossible task. At his disposal is anything he wants - men, resources, money. And he will not stop until he has completed his mission.

Up to now, the drugs trade has been accustomed to world governments attempting to curtail their criminal activities. But up to now, those governments have played by the rules. And that is about to change. The rules no longer apply. A dirty war is about to get a whole lot dirtier....

Frederick Forsyth is the author of 11 best-selling novels, including The Day of the Jackal, The Fourth Protocol, The Fist of God, Icon, Avenger and The Afghan.

I was disappointed by the author's previous book, The Afgan, which I felt was inferior in plotting to his many excellent thrillers that I've enjoyed in the past. The Cobra has more in common with the latter, though the theme is very different. In past books the quarry has usually been a political figure or regime, whereas in this book the adversary is the cocaine drugs trade based in Columbia. As with other books by the author there's a lot of detail about aircraft, guns, bombs and admiring references to the SAS and its US equivalent. Women hardly figure: it's real 'boys own stuff', yet, surprisingly, as a woman I enjoy these books. The technological detail gives a sense of authenticity and usually it's not so overdone as to be boring.
It's an intriguing story that starts in the present day, with obvious references to President Obama and PM David Cameron, though they are never mentioned, and carries on into the future for a couple of years. A retired spy is coaxed out of retirement and given leave, and an enormous budget, to create an audacious plan to destroy the network of the cocaine trade fanning out from South America into the USA and Europe. Real and fictitious characters are interwoven in this pacy thriller with some surprises along the way that I won't spoil by describing. The author has obviously done a great deal of research into the drugs trade and it is a chilling story of corruption, vicious violence fueled by the gigantic profits to be made between the crop in the jungle to the streets of the West.
It's interesting how the fall of Communism has caused the likes of Forsyth and Le Carre to find other adversaries for their 'heros' to tackle.

What a fabulous book typical of Frederick Forsyth that will keep you listening to the end. Full of fascinating twists and turns it will give you an insight into the cocaine trade. I would think the information on how cocaine is processed would put you off the drug for life. Thoroughly recommended.

A thriller with a plot that could be a solution to many of today's ills. However, the narrator's lack of education regarding foreign language pronunciation and the misplacing of letters in foreign words really spoils the credibility of the author's knowledge. This narrator should only be given American stories and stay well clear of international novels. Infuriating for anyone with even a basic knowledge of Spanish, Italian or Portugese!

Not one of Fred's best. Fine if you are a plane spotter, but otherwise, it reads rather like a ponderous technical manual in which very little happens very slowly. John Chancer makes a reasonable fist of narrating but he does struggle with English accents which does make us Brits wince a bit. Couldn't wait to finish it and move on to something more interesting.

A reasonable book, not really a page turner and the value is in the mystery rather than the quality of the writing so it's not a book I'll listen to a second time. The Jack Reacher books for example I do listen to multiple times.

Excellent new book form Forsyth. He still tends to list events in a long stream, one event after another with not enough narrative. But it is a great story and well worth the 'read'.
The character of the Cobra is very reminiscent of Le Carre and you could just see Smiley doing something similar !

Really disappointed, more an essay on the drugs trade rather than a story..The book lacked depth by the bucket loads. I really expected more. My first and last listen to a Forsyth and i say that with a heavy heart as i expected so much more.The ending was bizarre, confusing and rushed and i felt that Mr Forsyth had gotten bored with the whole thing.

I'm actually working my way through all of Forsyth's books, and didn't know this features a couple of previous characters (from the Avenger story), you can listen to it without having prior knowledge as i did.

Its well written as you would expect, however i felt that all the parts did not fit together as well as they have in some of his other stories. I would recommend The Devil's Alternative over this . its a better story and the David Rintoul is great as a story teller.

I had been a FF fan and was glad to see a new one come out. No doubt an interesting topic and close to drug problem faced on a global scale. But if you are looking for an exciting plot and a page-turner......you are looking in the wrong place. Climax is also weak. I normally don't go for abridged versions, but for this one I wouldn't have minded.............

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Torje

Newton Stewart, United Kingdom

02/03/11

Overall

"Forsyth is still the master of the genre"

I have been a fan of Frederick Forsyth since I read "The Day of The Jackal" 40 years ago. His style, more than any other author of this genre, exemplifies the thoroughly researched thriller and “The Cobra” doesn’t disappoint.
If you expect gunfights and explosions on every second page, then Forsyth is not for you. However, if a beautifully built storyline is what you enjoy, look no further. The suspense in this novel is subtle and understated and makes you keep on "turning the pages".
John Chancer manages to give the persons in “The Cobra” individual characters and I find his narration excellent.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Renny

VILLENA, Spain

22/09/10

Overall

"reader could improove"

The book looses something with the reader - hopeless pronouncing foreign words. But a great story that manages to overcome the reader. Recomended.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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